Best of Alt. Rock: Post #6

Beck

He is an amazing artist with some really intriguing music.  I say "intriguing" because not all of his music is what you might consider "normal," which I think is a promising trademark of alternative rock.  Also, the guy has produced several albums and is still making music today!  The longevity of his career should also indicate Beck's merit for joining the Pragmus Media Alt. Rock Hall of Fame. Also, there is the minor detail that Beck kiiinda produced a song that could serve as an anthem for all the people out there who simply don't give a darn about what people think of them.  That is, the "Losers." ;) If you have never heard Beck's song "Loser" and if you've never seen the music video, I strongly encourage you to do so now.  If you appreciate alt. rock or the style it adheres to, you will love that music video!  It is one of the best from the 90s, and I would contend that it is one of the best song/music video combos today.  Just... great!

The reason why I don't see Beck as a One-Hit Wonder is because 1.) he is a great musician who has proven his abilities on numerous occasions, 2.) he still plays for big-deal venues like freaking Saturday Night Live, and 3.) when it comes to producing new music, Beck does not fall short.  I guess you could argue that quality is more important than quantity, but Beck's albums pretty much fit the bill for quality as well.  No way!, right? ;)  I won't talk too much more about his many albums here, but my personal favorite pieces by beck are "Where it's at" from his album, Odelay and "Loser" from Mellow Gold. Some other good songs by Beck are "Little ones" (please forgive the spelling if it's off), "Sunday," and others.  Beck is just cool.  Although, I must warn you that you might be a tad annoyed with a few of his songs that use synthetic sounds to an extreme--honestly, just skip those... Other than that, I think Beck's creations are rockin' good.

To be continued...

<<Next time: Last Alt. Rock post for Pragmus:

"Nirvana!">>

Best of Alt. Rock--Post #5

Hello everyone!  It has been about a week since the last alt rock post, so I thought today would be an ideal day to do one.  As I write these, I hope they indicate that there is great music that is so often overlooked by our media because we ignore who top bands in sub genres might be to find the top rock songs of all time.  I though that label was way too broad for music lovers who know that there is more to rock than just the label "rock."  Rock actually contains numerous sub genres that I believe go underappreciated, such as "Alternative," "Punk," "Classic," "Metal," and others.  This segment is part  of our assessment of the "Alternative" category, without the typical superficiality of "Top Whatever" lists.  We have a total of about five bands left to look at, and then we will be moving on to our next category: Punk. Thanks for reading, let us know what you think, and please offer any suggestions for our next sub genre, "Punk" in the comments or to our email, pragmusmedia@gmail.com.

Pearl Jam 

Let's talk about Pearl Jam.  Yeah, there is a great chance you already know about these guys, because they as a band are pretty much super famous and really stellar at what they do.  The general tone of Pearl Jam music is just, "Yes, I am so ready to have a jam session," and I think they are a fantastic band to listen to at any chill time, really.  According to Pearl Jam's bio from Rolling Stone, they, along with Nirvana, helped popularize that alt./grunge Seattle sound we love so much.  Thanks, Pear Jam!  They really produced a ton of great stuff, which is precisely why I chose them: they are a fantastic band that is not a one-hit wonder!  My favorite albums from Pearl Jam include "Vitalogy," "Vs.," and "Ten."  I just happen to loooooove he album cover art on these pieces too, so I will post those covers here.  Oh!  Rearview Mirror was a pretty good album too--check it out sometime!

CD Cover for the album, "Vs."

And what is interesting is that, much like Nirvana, Pearl Jam produced music that meant something; they read newspaper articles and sought to make their music much more than mere entertainment.  I think this is the mark of a great band.  An example of what I am talking about if PJ's song "Jeremy," which, at the same time as being very popular and catchy, represented the hardships of a real young man who the artists read about in the newspaper.  It is a sad song, but we love it because it means so much more than just rhythm and rhyme--it represents a true human experience.  If you look at Nirvana'a "Polly," you will find that the song has similar origins in the songwriter's (Kurt Cobain's) reading of an article from the paper about a young woman who was kidnapped.  Both bands rock hard and add an additional element of awesome with their awareness of current events of their time and of adversities in modern American society.

R.E.M. 

These guys are are a band that is somewhat lesser-known than Pearl Jam, but they are also deserving of a spot in the Pragmus Alt. Music Hall of Fame because they created sooo many great songs that are still favorites of many today.  According to R.E.M.'s MTV artist biography, the band "marked the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock."  I think this is recognizable in their sound as well because they have a hint of punk and atlernative-ness that makes their music a great fit for a changing era.  With that, this band is also a personal favorite of my mom and this really cool shuttle driver I had the opportunity to talk to a while ago.  Go figure!  Great band with a cool following, and I think they should be recognized more as a whole because, often when I mention this band, people have no idea who they are!  Such a pity too, because a lot of their music is well-known, so I think people could benefit from listening to more of their work.  I put one of their music videos below so you can check them out if you have not already.  The song in the video is one of my favorite R.E.M. songs, and I think you'll enjoy it, especially if you appreciate alt. rock!  It's really not a bad music video either.  :)

Oasis...

"Definitely Maybe," one of their best albums.

Okay, guys, this band is one of my all-time favorite groups, so get ready for some heavy fan-bias! ;)  Yeah, they have sooo many great hits, they have a really great attitude to their music and as a band (love it!), and their music is wonderful to listen to on my occasion.  Gah! I am fan-spazzing so much that I cannot really concentrate on this section! Gosh, if you have not heard of them, please do so now. ;) Listen to all the songs you can because they still have older hits that are played on some pop stations today! Some of their biggest hits include "Champaigne Supernova," "Wonderwall," and sooo many others! 

Another of their greatest works, called
"(What's the Story) Morning Glory?

Also, they are from Manchester, England, so they are not only one of the crown jewels of a sweet sub genre (Alt. Rock), but they are also one of the many stellar bands to have come out of the U.K.  And, as such, it makes sense that they played music that was influenced by such bands as the Beatles (Rolling Stone).  Below, is their music video for "Wonderwall," which is an amazing song that you most likely have heard before, as this is one of the songs I referred to that still gets played on modern pop and rock stations today!

Oh!  And fun fact about Oasis: they use the work "shine" a lot in their music!  Give  a listen to some of their albums, and you will see this almost immediately. ;)

Thanks for reading, Pragmus fans!  Check us out on Twitter (@PragmusMedia) and on Patreon, and don't forget to subscribe to the blog!  Keep rockin' our socks, Pragmus peeps!

Corey Cherrington
(Pragmus Sigma)
Blog and Social Media Administrator

Pragmus, Patreon, Patrons, oh my!

Hey everybody!  Pragmus has a Patreon now.  And what does that mean?  Well, that's clear to those of you who know Patreon, but for those of you who don't, here's what it is!

Patreon is a website for artists of all sorts who are seeking patrons.  Pragmus, as a rising media company, is seeking patrons of its own to help support us in our endeavors.  For example, right now, we can do limited things with the film equipment that we rent and borrow, but with additional support from Patreon patrons, we will be able to move towards starting our own studio and towards creating original films and other content of our own!  We think this is really exciting, and we would appreciate it a ton if you guys or people you know could check us out and donate anything from $1 to $10 to $50 per month--choose whatever you like!  Every cent helps. We want this to become your studio. You can check out our fabulous benefits for our patrons and also have our eternal thanks for your awesomeness!

Visit our Patreon link here for more info.  We are just getting  things going, so please dont judge the unfinished parts of our page. We're still getting used to using it. ;) Thanks, Pragmus fans!  Keep rocking our socks and don't forget to follow the blog and if you like what we do, consider donating!

Corey Cherrington
(Pragmus Sigma)
Blog and Social Media Administrator

Best Alt. Rock Bands (Post #3): Stone Temple Pilots and Smashing Pumpkins

Okay, so here is post #3 in the alt. rock series!  I bet you're excited huh?  Totally, wicked excited.  ;) Haha, so let's get down to business...

Stone Temple Pilots

Cool shot of the band members.

You ever heard of these guys?  Not too many people know the band name, but people often recognize the STP (Stone Temple Pilots) tunes that were pretty popular in the 90s.  I chose the STPs because they were not one hit wonders, but they produced a really great body of work.  In my opinion, some of their best songs include, "Dead and Bloated" (interesting title, I know, but this is alt. rock, baby!), "Wicked Garden" (I LOVE that song!), "Spoonman," "Vasoline," "Plush," "Creep," and ZOHMYGOODNESS!  These guys know how to rock!  

To be completely honest, I actually prefer the STPs over Cake in some senses and they continue to grow on me as I listen to their music more and more.  Please listen to it if you have a moment!  You will be missing out if you are an alt. rock fan and don't know about these guys' music.  One more thing about the STPs is that they have a great sound as a collective band. For example, typically you can tell a STP song from another generic 90s pop or alt. song because they have their own unique "no BS" sort of sound.  I just can't tell you how cool these guys are!  ^_^  But beware!  Their songs will get stuck in your head because not only are they catchy and chill, but they also have great lyrics that you will want to keep repeating to yourself.  Not because they are the most profound or necessarily inspiring, but because they are mysterious and rather well-put together.

<<Tell us what you think in the comment section below!  We love comments, and we want more opinions from rock fans on this.>>

Smashing Pumpkins

So, for you alt. rock fans out there, please don't come after me with torches and pitch forks when I say the following...  I actually was not a Smashing Pumpkins fan until recently.  My fear for assault comes from the fact that Smashing Pumpkins (I'll call them pumpkins from here on out) is absolutely raved about by people who like rock.  It used to be that I rolled my eyes when I found that people were Pumpkins Fans.  However, having listened to more of their work, I am a fan myself.  That's not to say that they are my favorite, but I definitely think they deserve a post on my best of the best alt. rock list.

<<This is not my favorite Pumpkins song, but my film teacher once showed this video in class for its cinematographic value.  It's pretty cool and it imitates an early French Film by Geroges Melies called A Trip to the Moon.>>

This is the Melies film I mentioned.

Pumpkin's songs are very distinct in their sound--if you have listened to their music, I'm sure you have heard the lead singer's unique voice and have felt the effects of it on the music.  I did not used to appreciate this in the past, but now I aee a lot of beauty in it because it is really unlike the voice of any other alt. rock singer that I've heard.  And that is saying a lot!  To be completely honest, sooooo many singers of the alt. rock scene that I am looking at right now sound almost identical to others.  I have listened to a lot of the same alt. rock songs numerous times and some of the songs I listen to cannot be easily distinguished by band, no matter how much I memorize about the bands and their sounds.  This is because of the similar sounds found in a lot of the alt. bands' vocals, guitar, etc. Although, at the same time, it is the bands that stand out from this cookie-cutter alt. rock norm and many of the bands I chose for this list are great because they stand out.  Smashing Pumpkins is an example of this.  I would totally check them out, even if you are skeptical of their unique sound at first.  I think I was initially too quick to judge about them, and I know now that I should have listened to more of their music to get a better picture!  :)

One more thing I'd like to mention is don't get hung up on what these guys' biggest "hits" are.   That's not to say that the "hits" are not good, just that Pumpkins have great songs other than their most popular works.  But I'd suggest just giving a listen to an entire album of theirs; for this, I'd recommend "Siamese Dream," which I think is their best album.  Don't be distracted by their big hits on the CD (i.e. "Today," and "Cherub Rock"), but just catch the vibes of the band's songs overall.  It really is a great sound once you get into it.  And they really produced a tonof good music.  Some of my favorites from the "Siamese Dream" album are "Mayonaise" and "Quiet."  I'm certain yours will be different from mine though!  Let us know what your favorites are in the comments section.

*Oh! One more thing, one of the Pumpkins' hits that I think is really great is "Bullet with Butterfly Wings."  Yeah, there are loads of notable songs from these guys, which it why they are deserving of recognition as one of the best of the best.

That's all for this post.  I'll be back tomorrow with another alt. rock post though.  ;)  For now, just keep rocking our socks, Pragmus fans!

Corey Cherrington

(Pragmus Sigma)

Blog and Social Media Administrator

Top Rock Songs of all Time??

*Please subscribe to the blog for updates and to support Pragmus Media!*

Kurt Cobain was so cool!

A while ago, I was in a weird mood at the grocery store when I stumbled upon an attractive magazine cover that said something along the lines of "Top 115 Rock Songs of all Time."  Naturally, as a rock aficionado (especially alternative rock!), I was like, "Woa, man!  This is cool!"  And I was super stoked to see that some of my favorite songs like "Loser" by Beck, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and "Come as you Are" by Nirvana, "Black Hole Sun" by the Stone Temple Pilots and "Hotel California" by the Eagles made it on there.  At the same time though, I felt like the list was wayyy too spread out over a wide variety of what I see to be sub genres of rock (i.e. Alternative, Metal, Classic, Punk... Gah!  So many!) and it really failed to provide an effective list of the tightest rock songs within each sub genre because its broad nature caused the list to overlook so many songs that merit "Top Whatever" recognition.

With that, I really think that choosing "Top Songs" is ineffective because it ignores the body of work created by talented artists/musicians to focus on one song of typically 3 minutes that was popularized for one reason or another.  My main point here is that I don't really want to talk about the one hit wonders (no offense--love those too!), but artists who have created more than one wonderful song. The reason for this is that, on the list I read, "American Pie" was chosen as the #1 rock song of all time, which I whole-heartedly disagree with.  That's not to say "American Pie" isn't a great song, because it is, but that it does not in my opinion deserve the #1 post of top rock songs of all time.  The artist wasn't particularly notable for other works, the song wasn't necessarily a generation-changer, and I think it is a tad superficial that a one-hit wonder took the top prize.  And I think that really takes critical value away from a list; that is, why should we make our "Top" evaluations so superficial and surface-level?  It's incredible how much significance this approach  makes the art lose!  Catchy tunes over meaningful works by consistently good artists?  No more, media.  No more.

Who doesn't love (or al least appreciate) the Beatles?

So, what am I going to do about it?  Because I think making a list of top bands/musicians within these sub genres is what needs to be done, I'm going to be starting a project to do just that in the following weeks and I'll be separating my evaluations onto the following categories:

Classic Rock

Punk Rock

Alternative/Grunge

Metal

Heavy Metal

Beck from his "Loser" Music Video

This list is subject to change based on my findings, so be ready for some sweet discoveries!

And what I'll try to do is introduce the band meriting awesomeness, talk briefly about their bodies of work and mention how they might have influenced other bands or society as a whole. One more thing you should know is that, in order to avoid superficiality, I won't be numbering the bands I choose from 1-10. Instead, I'll be picking the "Top Dudes (Girls included)" of each sub genre and noting their importance to the sub genre and to modern rock music altogether.  I wouldn't be so strict with guidelines for top ten normally, but I feel very strongly about the necessity for a list like this because I think there's so much more to rock and roll than meets the eye!

Keep your eyes open for more posts on the "top rock" stuff!  Keep rockin' our socks, Pragmus fans!

--Corey Cherrington

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Famous Romance meets Zombie Apocalypse

Rebecca's Rating: 85% or 85/100

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies . . . what are you even to expect?  Do you look for Jane Austin’s wit or a bloody war against undead monsters?  Well lucky for you, they planned for both in this fantastic adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.  And, having seen the film for myself, I can tell you that it was amazing!!  Of course no movie is perfect, but the level of imagination that they were able to create and portray out did all of that.

The flow of the story was surprisingly fluid.  Austin’s style and the time period are maintained in the way the characters speak and in the way major events are built up with impressive power and suspense.  On the other hand, such events were muted enough to not be too overpowering, so it worked out pretty well and seemed fairly balanced.  Effective scene transitions also helped accomplish this balance, so kudos to the filmmakers for that too!   In the beginning of the video a few of the characters were a little harder to understand in terms of motives and inner feelings, but once you became familiar with each character's unique personality, their intents and feelings were clarified and easier to follow.  With that, the acting didn’t feel forced or cheesy and the characters interacted very well together.  One example of when complex character interactions just worked was when Darcy proposed to Lizzie and then they start a fight to hide their real feelings initially.  This scene is powerful and believable due to the tactful nature in which it was done.

Of course I should mention a few of the downfalls at some point, because these merit mentioning here as well.  To begin with, I felt that the weakest point of the movie would have to be in the wardrobe.  There is one part of the movie where Lizzie’s dress obviously doesn’t fit correctly and you fear that there is going to be a wardrobe malfunction.  Darcy’s choice of dressing in all leather occasionally leads him to squeak in every quiet moment (okay, this could be a plus because that was pretty hilarious).  Another pitfall of the film was that there was plenty of awesome fighting, but the film's heroes/protagonists never have blood splattered on their clothing or on their blades (sort of fishy when they are spilling lots of blood).  It definitely would have saved money on their wardrobe/makeup budget to not have blood splatter, but just a little on our heroes would have been sexy, I mean great. ;)

Before I give my own rating of the film, I thought I'd talk about some of the critiques out there that other reviewers have made about the movie. From what I gathered, it would seem that the average score for the film is somewhere around 50%, with IMBD giving it about 60%, Metacritic 45%, and Rotten Tomatoes 42%.  There were tons of other number ratings for the film out there, but that was the general assessment from the big dogs of film critiquing.  Additionally, one critic from the Guardian deemed the film a case in which "the undead are dead boring" (See full review here).  Various other critics noted the potential of the film and, with that, stated that it was somewhat "dead," not as scary as it could have been (Rollingstone), and simply didn't work (Washington Post).  I do agree that certain aspects of the film were... well, wonky and could have been better.  At the same time though, I still enjoyed it and thought that it merited at least somewhat of a better review because I objectively thought it was a good film.

Personally, I give this movie an 85/100 partly because it was suspenseful and generally fun to watch.  Also, the story followed the original Pride and Prejudice well, but simultaneously maintained its own uniqueness.  Cinematography, lighting and music I felt were all well-balanced and the fights were choreographed to be fascinating as well as believable.  Actors portrayed their characters in ways that made complex connections with other characters and with the audience.  The movie gave the enjoyment of keeping the original dialogue and events close, but still was willing to give way to enough creativity to throw a loop in the end (that I won’t spoil).  

If you'd like to hear more from Pragmus on this film, click on our video review below!

Thanks for reading, Pragmus fans!  Keep watching movies and be sure to comment on our Blog posts!  We want to hear from you and know that your opinions are valuable!

Rebecca Peterson
Head Programmer at Pragmus Media

*Co-authored and edited by Pragmus Sigma (Corey Cherrington)

Grave of the Fireflies: the Pragmus Review that is no More

Thanks, Melberries... NOT.

A Pragmus Review that sadly is no more...

There are sooo many people lately who have been harassed by a certain con for a company called “Melberries” (I know, even the name is awful…).  What these guys do is look for YouTube videos that have any reference at all to Studio Ghibli films or other sorts of anime, and many other types of visual media.  Then they slam small-scale YouTubers with copyright claims because, as the sleazy company they are, they know that the YouTubers with less hits are pretty much not likely to get support from YouTube against the copyright claims.  You know what is really silly about this though?  People who reference the media that Melberries claims is unlawfully used are actually not doing anything against the law (that is, unless they actually post an entire episode of a show or a full-length film).  There is something called “fair use,” which is a copyright law protecting critics of the media being presented.  In all reality, it makes no sense to stop critics from using bits and pieces of full media texts because banning such use would be a strict form of censorship, barring fair criticisms of various media texts.

So, why are we talking about Melberries?  Well, this company has actually fought against us at Pragmus, saying that “fair use does not exist in Europe,” and threatening to take our review for Grave of the Fireflies down.  This, my friends, is not even a valid claim.  You see Alpha (Logan) and I (Corey, or Pragmus Sigma) looked pretty deep into this legal situation and found specific legislation in the European Union Law, called the "Copyright Directive," a.k.a. the "Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society."

The section of this document talking about copyright laws and, in effect, fair use policies, is section 3D, which states the following:

• (d) quotations for purposes such as criticism or review, provided that they relate to a work or other subject-matter which has already been lawfully made available to the public, that, unless this turns out to be impossible, the source, including the author's name, is indicated, and that their use is in accordance with fair practice, and to the extent required by the specific purpose...

Roger Ebert--one of the greatest critics of our day.

<<Just imagine what the film industry would be if people like Roger Ebert were shut down for copyright claims that critics should be protected against by Fair Use laws.  We'd be missing out on some of the most important aspect of film--criticism and analyses.>>

HMMMM…  I don’t know about you guys, but I’d say that this law obviously indicates that fair use does indeed exist in the European Union.

Melberries, however, begs to differ.

What happened to us next is this: after we sent an email to Melberries in effort to explain the existence of this EU law, they stopped contacting us through email and cracked down even harder on their copyright claims for our film review.  Ultimately, because of their incessant claims against us, our video was deemed to be forcibly taken down from Youtube.  Sometimes people like us--smaller-scale YouTubers--not only have videos taken down, but their entire YouTube account is frequently suspended or terminated altogether.  This is a major problem because it effectively shuts down growing Youtube channels for the monetary gain of the copyright claim filing industry.  This is unjust and, quite frankly, downright uncool. 

What the even?

So, from here, we hope that media companies will get the hint. Fair Use and reviews are an excellent way to get publicity and attention. In this new age of the internet, we must push for a greater emphasis on the freedom of speech. We have a right to review and a right to critique!  If you feel strongly about this as well, we ask you to please leave a comment about this on the the fair use petition site some big-name YouTube critics have put together.  You can access the site here.  Thanks, Pragmus fans!  We hope this was somewhat informative for you.  Keep rocking our socks, friends!

Pragmus Sigma

(Corey Cherrington)

Blog and Social Media Administrator

Image of the "Take Down Abuse" petition site

Why I Love Herinteractive

The company's logo

Not many people have heard of my favorite gaming company--Herinteractive.  They are really fantastic game-makers and always have their gamers in mind.  What I really like most about them though is that they constantly seek to help girls and women feel strong and empowered to go and do what they dream of doing!  

The one, the only, Nancy Drew!

The typical Herinteractive game goes as follows: the protagonist is Nancy Drew from the popular mystery book series by Carolyn Keene (which was actually a pseudonym for many hired women authors, but that's another story) and you as the gamer play Nancy Drew, never actually seeing what she looks like (oh the mystery of it all! ;).  You look for clues in every scene to solve the mystery you've fallen into, and get this: the games are actually pretty hard!  That is, if you want to complete the game without hints, it means you will be investing several hours (usually a day or so) and lots of energy from all that perplexity into achieving the big win.  To be completely honest, I and many other Nancy Drew computer game fans actually have to go to the forum on Herinteractive.com in order to find hints that will help us get past a particularly challenging point.  SO, in short, these games are intellectually stimulating!

Each game also includes several mini puzzles that you have to figure out in order to solve the mystery; the puzzles are usually a challenge as well, so put on your thinking cap and get to using that noodle! Haha, in sum, you'll love it if you like challenging your mind though, trust me.

Curse of Blackmoor Manor Cover

Another thing I really love about the games is that they promote fun learning by incorporating facts and information of all sorts into the journey on the way to the game's solution.  I remember playing Curse of Blackmoor Manor in middle school and learning about ancient Runes, Greek gods and goddesses, lore of the British Isles, the solstices...  *sighs*  I LOVE learning things from the Nancy Drew games...  And because of those games, I have a bunch of knowledge about the world that many others do not have.  It is very fun to know things too, because you have lots of interesting things to share with others.  :)  Gah!  It is great.  It's not just one Nancy Drew game that's a great learning opportunity either, but all of them! You'll learn about new peoples and places in every game and will grow a great appreciation for other cultures through these games.  For myself, I've found that my travel bug has been encouraged by the cultural appreciation obtained in Nancy Drew games because I am more knowledgeable about places such as Louisiana, the U.K., Italy, Japan, etc.  All this has made me more excited than ever to actually go and see these places!  Nancy Drew and Herinteractive really manage to light a fire under you and get you going on forming and carrying out awesome dreams!

Oh yes, all the Nancy Drew humor!  ;)

I would love to do some reviews on these games, so look out for those in the future!  I'll have to get it approved by my boss/business partner, Alphie (Pragmus Alpha ;), but once I have a feeling it wont be too hard; I'll probably just have to walk to Argentina again and get him some of that special tea leaf he likes, but I've done that once already, so no big deal at all!  ;) Keep rockin' our socks, Pragmus fans!  Talk to you again soon.

Pragmus Sigma
Blog and Social Media Administrator

Also Nancy Drew Lover! -_^

Censorship in Today's Media: Why Should Opinions be Silenced?

Let's talk for a moment about censorship... Good 'ol censorship is an idea that everyone under the sun might be inclined to say is terrible because, people typically don't like to be censored or restricted from their freedom of speech and expression. But do we really live by the principles of freedom that we claim to believe?

There are a great deal of political, progressive, and social movements, which is great! This has allowed various minority groups to be recognized and has permitted American society to provide a greater amount of tolerance for people regardless of their race, gender, identity, or sexual orientation. This is wonderful! And we have made so much progress over the past 50+ years because of it.  The not so wonderful thing is the fact that anybody not on board with these ideas is shut up.

I'm not saying I'm in favor of discrimination or ideas that are so obviously archaic, outdated, and stupid. What I am saying is that there needs to be freedom to say things even if people disagree with them. There's a quote from Evelyn Beatrice Hall that applies perfectly to this idea:

Evelyn Beatrice Hall

"I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it."

This is the hallmark of any free society: having access to the right to say what you want and to express what you truly believe. If what someone has to say is offensive, instead of attacking it with policy and legislation, what people should do is attack it with influence and ideas. Show the world why an idea is worth fighting for and how to implement it; in other words, we need conversations rather than monologues, dialogue rather than social limitations. Increased censorship will only cause a counter-culture to develop, ultimately forcing freedom-loving people to fight forced restrictions.

The internet is a forum where ideas can be shared freely, which is a good thing. It allows ideas to flow as they will in a raw and uncensored way. At the same time though, there are pushes to restrict our privileges on the internet in order to prevent "hate speech" in a culture dominated by a call for complete social justice. What's crazy about this is that a lot of what is being protested is not actually "hate speech," but honest opinions that are seen as offensive to very sensitive individuals.  Hate speech itself should be discouraged, but we must recognize the fact that there is a huge difference between hateful words and valid points of view.  

What I suggest to combat misunderstanding of opinions as "hateful" is that society obtain thicker skin in order to avoid being offended by nearly anything. Offense is a choice, my friends. The right to "Not be Offended" doesn't lie with society, but with the individual. Avoid censorship and let free dialogue roam. Let's be tolerant and loving to others, but also thick-skinned and mature.  This is how we facilitate good dialogue on important topics--we must be open to hearing things that we might not agree with.  If we are not willing to hear other viewpoints, how can we expect to express our own?

Pragmus Alpha
CEO

*Edited by Pragmus Sigma

Star Trek: the "Slow Motion Picture"

There's a surprising trend in media nowadays. It tends to be that various film industries, for some unknown reason, love being relevant and in touch with the trends that extend into the future of film. Weird right? Yeah, I don't understand it either. Apparently neither did the Star Trek franchise.

Star Wars came out in 1977 and was amazing (can I get an amen?). The effects were brilliant and the pacing moved at a breakneck speed as opposed to the slower speeds moviegoers were used to back then. It was truly a movie that defined a generation of filmmakers.

2001: A Space Odyssey came out in 1968 and was also amazing. However, it wasn't amazing for the same reason. 2001 had great effects, but also moved at a slower pace with much focus put on its groundbreaking effects. Because of the great visual symbolism and the excellent style of the late director Stanley Kubrick, it was seen as a visual experience.

So, in 1979, Star Trek: the Motion Picture came out... It seemed that they wanted to do what 2001: A Space Odyssey did and make Star Trek an experience. Unfortunately, Star Wars had come out by then and people began to expect fast pacing to be more prominent in science fiction. So Star Trek: the Motion Picture kind of missed the boat by about ten years. Oops.

This movie is often called Star Trek: the "Slow" Motion Picture, and I can see why. Pragmus Omega and I were able to have entire conversations between scenes while watching this movie without missing any major plot points. Pretty much all anyone was doing was staring at a screen for far too long. When I watch a movie, I like to stare at a screen where characters do interesting things; I don't want to stare at a screen where characters stare at a screen. I will say, however, that it does make them oddly relatable...

So, to sum it all up, here's Pragmus' evaluation of the film:

• If you cut about 40 minutes off the running time of this film, it wouldn't be too bad. 
• When you do watch the movie, keep the fast forward button handy. 
• The ending is actually quite good and pretty thought-provoking. 
• A few of the longer shots are quite atmospheric and create a good sense of ambiance.  And finally...
• It is a movie worth checking out, but seriously, rent don't buy.

Thanks for tuning in!  Keep an eye out for our review next week, and don't forget to subscribe to our channel and follow the Pragmus blog for our latest news!

Pragmus Alpha

CEO

*Ed. Pragmus Sigma
Blog Admin.